Plot Bunny Overflow Containment Unit
by CV12Hornet
Summary: A storage unit for all the ideas I don't have time for, rendered here as various one-shots.
1. Kill la KillOne Piece Crossover

**We Are Not Calling Ourselves the Nudist Pirates!**

(Working title)

Kill La Kill/One Piece crossover

 **AN: Welcome to the Plot Bunny Overflow Containment Unit! My policy with stories is to not start a new one as long as I have one ongoing. But I just keep getting more and more ideas! They keep multiplying!**

 ***bang***

 **Excuse me, had to shoot another one. They get everywhere. Anyway, as I don't want to lose these ideas, and may even turn them into a longform story, I decided to store them here. If you want to see any of these become a full story, leave a review saying so! Now, be vewwy vewwy quiet. We'we hunting wabbits.**

* * *

" _Clear the deck!"_

Tsumugu Kinagase paused in firing his DTR's sewing guns as he heard Aikuro's voice over the radio. There was only one reason Aikuro would want the deck cleared, and Tsumugu was not looking forward to the experience.

"Hey, what are you up to?!" Tsumugu shouted towards the bridge. "Don't tell me you're-"

" _Oh, but I am!"_ came the expected answer. " _The last ace up the Naked Sol's sleeve: Great Naked Dagger!"_

The hinged flight deck of the Naked Sol flipped upwards, coming together into a massive blade perched atop the other massive blade that was the bow of the ship. Tsumugu looked up at the Original Life Fiber, seeing the yellow slit Ryuko had left in the mass.

"Oh, you want to use that blade to peel that gourd bare, huh?" Tsumugu said, grinning widely. "I like it!"

The Original Life Fiber, perhaps sensing the danger (or simply reacting to Ryuko trying to chop up its core) fired off another salvo of explosive shots as the Naked Sol began to accelerate. With the ship's much narrower profile, most of the shots missed, but enough hit to, along with the near misses, rock the already abused ship again.

"Damage report!" Aikuro called out.

" _Major damage to #1, #3 turbines!"_ came the answer from the engine room. " _Remaining #2 turbine is putting out all it can!"_

Aikuro slammed his fist on his console in frustration. "Crap! This is as far as we can get on human power, huh?" In front of him, he could see the Original Life Fiber lowering its gaping maw, ready to devour the Naked Sol and every living soul on board.

Distracted by the Original Life Fiber, Aikuro didn't notice the ding as the ship's power meter started to fill. Soroi did.

"Mr. Mikisugi," he began. "What does that meter mean?"

"Huh?" Aikuro glanced at the power meter, only to double take in shock as it started to rapidly climb. "What's going-"

" _Mr. Mikisugi, the turbine has started turning again!"_ came the engine room again. " _Or rather, it's spinning like crazy!"_

Aikuro grinned as he watched the meter shoot up to maximum capacity. "Yes! Strap yourselves in, everyone, it's- grrrrrn!"

Massive g-forces gripped the ship as the aft-mounted rocket ignited, propelling the ship forward at such great speeds that it lifted out of the water, aimed right at the open tear in the Original Life Fiber. The Naked Sol tore through the outer shell of the Original Life Fiber with ease, but in the process expended most of its momentum, stopping just short of the core and nudging Ryuko forward.

"Uwaah!" Ryuko cried out as she was pushed forward, Senketsu turning back to his standard Kamui form. "Mako? Is that you?!"

"Ryuko!" Mako cried out, still running on the giant mousewheel that powered the turbine. "Ryuko!"

"Mako! It's you, right?!" Ryuko called out, her expression morphing into one of joy as she realized that yes, it was her best friend calling out to her. "Mako!"

"The gang- The gang's all here!" Indeed, running alongside Mako on the turbine were the rest of the Academy's two-stars, their uniforms resewn by Iori.

"Ryuko, I can feel it! Your blood is all fired up!" Senketsu exclaimed in glee.

"Yeah! Let's do it, Senketsu!"

"Right!"

Ryuko and Senketsu transformed back into Shippu form again, tearing forward and _through_ the core of the Original Life Fiber, the lack of resistance allowing the Naked Sol to accelerate forward again. The two went faster and faster, and were through the other side of the Original Life Fiber in less than a second, shooting past Satsuki and her elite four at speeds usually only attained by falling asteroids.

' _W-What's… going…'_ Ryuko wondered as the wind tore past her. Somehow, the world was becoming brighter, despite it being night. ' _I don't-'_

And then everything. Went. White.

~o~

It was a bright sunny morning in this patch of sea, typical for this part of the North Blue. This far out to sea there were no ships, no birds, and barely any fish.

A good thing, too, as anyone who saw the massive tear open up in the sky might have gone mad at the sight. Jagged and seething in black and crimson, it lasted for only a bare few seconds, long enough to disgorge a dagger-shaped ship and six small, human-sized figures.

' _Wha- What's going-'_ Satsuki wondered internally, before forcing her shock to the back of her mind with the discipline born of years under Ragyo's "tender" care. ' _No time for that. Falling out of sky. Companions?'_ A quick glance revealed that the Elite Four were all conscious, and Jakuzure was already diving down to pick them up. Behind her she could see the Naked Sol. It was sturdy, it would survive the landing. And Ryuko-.

Satsuki's eyes widened minutely. Ryuko - her _sister_ \- was unconscious, Senketsu deactivated. At this height, and without Senketsu's durability boost, an impact with the water would be devastating, Life Fiber hybrid or not. She gritted her teeth. And that was something she would not allow!

"Junketsu Senpu!" she cried out, Junketsu shifting into its flight mode. She rocketed down to the limp Ryuko, carefully pulling up beside her. It took very fine adjustments the Kamui almost couldn't handle, but Satsuki managed to get beneath Ryuko at the same speed, allowing her to bleed off velocity gradually instead of all at once. Unnecessary, perhaps, considering Ryuko had shrugged off worse, but Satsuki wasn't taking any chances.

Her sister safely in her arms, and keenly aware of her own building fatigue, Satsuki watched as the Naked Sol plunged into the water, carving a trench into the sea and throwing up large waves on either side. As the ship slowed, motive power winding down, the flight deck reverted back to its normal mode.

Satsuki touched down on the torn deck, deactivating Junketsu, just as Ryuko started to stir. "Satsuki…?" she muttered tiredly.

"Rest, Ryuko," she said in reply as she started towards the Mankanshoku aid station. "Are you hurt anywhere?"

"Don't think so… just tired…" came the reply, followed by a yawn.

"Don't worry, you'll be able to rest soon," Satsuki assured her as she got to the aid station.

"Oh my, Ryuko-chan!" Sukuyo Mankanshoku cried out as she saw the two. "What's wrong with her, Miss Kiryuin?"

"I think she's just exhausted, but I wanted to be sure."

"Oh! That's no problem, then!" Sukuyo reached under the stretcher, pulling out a plate of steaming croquettes. "All she needs to do is eat a few of these and she'll be aaaaall better! At least until she needs to go to sleep."

Satsuki eyed the croquettes dubiously. "That doesn't seem-"

"They should work," came the voice of Tsumugu from beside her. "They sustained Mankanshoku and the other two-stars during the battle."

"Well, if you don't want to try Sukuyo's croquettes, then I should probably examine her," Barazo Mankanshoku piped up, a lecherous gleam entering his eyes. That gleam got the hell out of dodge the millisecond one half of Bakuzan came within millimeters of his forehead. "In a _totally_ professional manner, of course." The doctor whimpered.

"I think I'll-" Satsuki cut herself off when she saw Ryuko already chowing down on one of the croquettes, color returning to her face.

"Man, I never get tired of these! Probably because the ingredients are never quite the same," Ryuko mumbled as she stuffed another croquette in her mouth. "Seriously, these are great, Mrs. Mankanshoku."

"I keep telling you to call me Sukuyo, dear," she chided, though not unkindly. "But I'm glad you like them." She blinked as she saw that the plate had already been cleared. "Ara, you must have been quite tired, Ryuko-chan. Do you need any more?"

"Nah, I'm good Mrs. Mankanshoku," Ryuko replied, wiping a few crumbs off her cheek. "Thanks for the meal." Sated and re-energized, she finally took in the bright blue sky and calm, clear sea. "Where the hell are we? I could've sworn it was night when we attacked that damn ball of yarn. And why aren't we being attacked, or space dust?"

"I don't know," Satsuki said simply. "Once I made sure you were fine I was planning to go talk to Inumuta and Mikisugi. Hopefully their sensors will have an answer for us."

Ryuko smirked and let out a light chuckle. Satsuki? Admitting when she didn't know something? She really had changed. "Well, what are we doing standing around for? Let's-"

A sudden chill fell over the deck, causing both Ryuko and Satsuki to shiver and break out in a cold sweat. Inumuta and Sanageyama were shaking, too, while Jakuzure, Gamagoori, and the Mankanshoku's were strangely immune.

Wordlessly, the four affected dashed for the edge of the deck, casting their eyes onto the sea. It didn't take long for them to zero in on a small speck on the ocean, moving slowly but steadily towards them.

Satsuki couldn't see any details, couldn't feel anything but a vague sense of dread, but from her companions' expressions they were sensing _something_. And it wasn't pleasant.

"What do you see?" she stage-whispered, though why she didn't know.

"Satsuki-sama…" Sanageyama breathed. "You can't feel it? The malevolent coldness, the sheer coiled power?"

"Yeah, I feel it too," Ryuko added. "And not a single scrap of Life Fiber either."

"I have a visual," Inumuta said. "It's a boat. Wooden, low-freeboard. Single mast with a single sail. Candles arranged around the deck. And a man, sitting in the center."

Satsuki didn't say anything. They needed more information, and for that, whoever it was needed to be closer.

So they waited, the boat approaching with agonizing slowness. After several minutes, the speck having resolved into something vaguely boat-shaped, Ryuko and Inumuta suddenly tensed.

"His eyes…" Inumuta breathed.

"Like a hawk's…" Ryuko agreed solemnly.

"Tch," Satsuki growled. "Mikisugi! Get the motors running!"

"Good idea!" Sanageyama exclaimed, Ryuko and Inumuta nodding in agreement. "We can go full steam ahead and-!"

Ryuko promptly punched him in the nose, staggering him long enough for Inumuta to whip out his Goku Uniform's dendrites and tie him down, Ryuko adding a few kicks to his ribs for good measure.

" _Sorry, Satsuki, but engineering's telling me that turbine #2 is down after all the stress we put on it! We can get #1 up and running in an hour, but it'll be only good for five knots, at best!"_

"Dammit, he'll be right next to us long before then," Satsuki muttered. "Mikisugi, get that turbine up and running as fast as you can! We'll have to do this the hard way."

" _I understand. Good luck."_

Satsuki sighed before turning to Inumuta. "Inumuta, can you calculate our chances of victory?"

Inumuta was already tapping away at his wrist-mounted computer. "According to my calculations, Satsuki-sama, we have a 95% chance of all of us dying horribly." His collar opened as he swallowed conspicuously, sweat shining on his brow. "Though I admit to possibly being biased out of sheer terror."

"So our chances aren't that bad?" Ryuko asked with a hopeful grin as she clenched and unclenched her grip on her blade.

"No, it means that I was as optimistic as possible when calculating. Our real chances are far, far worse."

The delinquent snapped a disbelieving look at him. "How could things get worse than 95%!?"

"I'm still trying to calculate at what decimal place the nines end at."

"He's right, that _is_ worse." Senketsu admitted.

" _Not helping!"_ Ryuko hissed at her clothing.

Finally, Satsuki could see the man on the boat. His eyes were indeed like a hawk's, slitted and piercing. She could almost feel herself being dissected by those eyes, but she shoved it aside with an effort of will. The man himself looked like he'd just walked off the set of a Zorro movie, feathered hat and all, and what appeared to be a very large sword was slung over his back. Satsuki blinked-

And then the man was suddenly right there on the deck. Satsuki's eyes widened in naked shock; she hadn't seen him move, and from the expressions on everyone's faces the only who had was Ryuko.

"Fascinating. I've never seen a ship like this." His eyes swept over those on the deck, from Aikuro and Soroi on the bridge, to Jakuzure, Tsumugu, and Gamagoori standing protectively in front of the Mankanshokus, and finally zeroed in on Satsuki, who only barely managed to not flinch.

"Are you the leader of this ship?" he asked as if talking about the weather.

"I am," Satsuki stated, ignoring the frenzied motions from Ryuko to stop.

"Then die."

~o~

Hawkeye dashed towards the self-proclaimed leader of this motley crew, his small knife drawn. His arrival had confirmed that only one could see him move, and none could move fast enough to stop him.

So he was rather surprised when he felt a hand clamp onto his wrist before he could reach the white-clad woman.

"Don't. Touch. My. _SISTER!"_ the one with the red stripe howled, hurling him away. He flipped gracefully, landing back on his feet, and just managed to get his sword out in time to block the twin red blades the girl brought down on him.

The girl erupted into a flurry of strikes, each one fast and powerful but entirely graceless, as if they were iron clubs in the hands of a thug. As he blocked each one, he made sure to give them a good look, and what curious blades they were! The curving single edge, the holes near the handles, the handles themselves. They greatly resembled the two halves of a scissor, and he suspected that's exactly what they were.

' _Hm. She's looking frustrated. I suppose now is as good a time as any to test those blades' durability.'_

The black blade flowed seamlessly from a block into a strike, Ryuko just managing to interpose one of the Scissor Blades in its path before it chopped her in two again. Once again he was surprised as the red sword took the blow without even chipping. The number of swords in the world that could do that could be counted on both hands with fingers left over.

As he continued on the offensive, his impression of the girl's fighting style continued to strengthen. Speed and power to spare, but little technique and subtlety. He smirked. If she could develop her skills, she'd be quite a challenge. Perhaps even the one to take his title... if she beat the three-sword style master, of course.

Finally, the two broke the exchange through some unspoken agreement. Hawkeye remained in a ready stance, completely unwinded. The girl held a stance, too, but it was shaky, from exhaustion if her panting was any indication.

"What is your name, girl?" he asked, for it was just good etiquette to know.

"Ryuko Matoi," she replied between breaths. "And what's yours?"

"My full name is something you have not earned yet," he said simply. "You may call me Hawkeye."

"Well, Hawkeye," Ryuko stated, straightening up now that she had caught her breath, a confident smirk on her face. "You're pretty strong. And I can tell you're holding back."

For the third time Hawkeye found himself surprised. Oh, this one was one to watch, indeed.

"But-" she continued, slinging her swords on her arms and reaching up to the red glove on her left wrist. "I've got a little something in reserve myself."

She pulled the pin- and promptly fell flat on her face. "What the-"

"As I thought," Hawkeye said. "You are exhausted from a previous fight."

That prompted Ryuko to glare at him and try to haul herself back to her feet. "I'll show you exhaust- grrn!" And failed. She paused, seemingly listening to something he couldn't hear, and snapped at her _clothing_. "And ya couldn't've told me this five minutes ago?"

"A pity," Hawkeye stated, closing his eyes. "Perhaps whatever boost you would have gotten could have let you win. But now, you have to die lying on the ground instead of standing and fighting."

"No!" Ryuko snarled, her arms straining to lift herself up. "I refuse to die here!"

"Goodbye." And he brought the black blade down.

*Clang!*

Only for it to be stopped by the white-clad woman and the green-haired young man. Their clothes had changed, both far more armor-like and far more skimpy, and both were straining to hold back his blade - but they were holding it back.

"You. Do not. Touch. My. Sister." The woman intoned frigidly as she shoved against his sword. " _Ever."_

"Where Satsuki-sama goes, I go!" the green-haired man added.

The two heaved their blades, pushing Hawkeye back and breaking the deadlock. He could see the fear in their eyes, and yet despite that they stood there, protecting Ryuko Matoi. And the white-clad woman… Satsuki, her name was. He knew that presence. The presence of a conqueror.

He smiled. Oh, he was keeping an eye on this entire crew. He hadn't had this much fun in years. No, no, that was a lie. He'd had this much fun once before, a scant few months ago.

His grin widened a little more. Yes... why not? That would do nicely.

He strode over to the edge of the ship where his boat was docked and addressed the residents of the Naked Sol as he swung his sword onto his back. "My name is Dracule Mihawk!" he announced firmly. "It is too soon for you to die here."

And with that, he leapt off the ship and onto his own vessel. He waited for a moment, and as expected there was the young conqueror, flanked not only by the green-haired monkey, but three others: a loyal dog, a firm toad and a vigilant snake. A moment later and there was Ryuko, supported by a girl with a foolish expression who didn't seem in the least bit scared.

His grin widened as he indulged himself and spread his arms wide. "Discover yourself. See the world! And grow _strong_ , Ryuko! You and your sister both!"

As expected, the pair tensed furiously, acknowledging the challenge wholeheartedly.

Mihawk swung his blade off his back and pointed it up at the children (mere _children,_ yet with such potential!). It would have been simple to slice their ship in two, to leave them to the sea... but where would be the fun in that?

"However long it may take..." He grinned viciously. "I shall await you at the top." He pointed his blade high into the air, stabbing the heavens themselves as he bellowed. "STRIVE WITH YOUR WHOLE HEART AND MIND TO BEST THIS BLADE, FIERCE ONE! STRIVE TO SURPASS ME, RYUKO MATOI!"

And so he sheathed his blade and sat in his seat, preparing to leave…

"OH, NO, YOU DON'T GET TO LEAVE IT AT THAT, ASSHOLE!"

"INDEED!"

Hawkeye heard the click of a high heel as he turned, and he saw Satsuki and Ryuko standing together, glaring defiance at him in fire and ice. A bright orange spotlight, half icy white and half fiery red, seemed to be shining down on them from no discernable source.

"WE SHALL BECOME STRONGER!" Satsuki promised, pure imperial _might_ resonating in her voice. "THE BOTH OF US!"

"AND THEN WE'RE GONNA FIND YOU!" Ryuko roared, indignant fury and unholy vengeance radiating from her being. "AND KICK YOUR ASS!"

"TOGETHER!" They chorused in tandem, a wave of almost corporeal power erupting from them and causing the world to ring like a bell.

It was too much. All of it was too much. Hawkeye threw his head back and laughed, a deep hearty laugh of pure _joy_.

One after another after _another_ they came! The best, the greatest, the most magnificent the world had to offer!

Ah, what an age this Great Pirate Era was to live in! What a great and _glorious_ age!

Finally, his laughter subsided, and he looked the two dead in the eye. "I look forward to it."

Sitting back down in his chair, he let the wind and the current carry him away to Reverse Mountain.

He had to return to Kuraigana Island to train, to prepare. After all... he would be entertaining guests, one day soon. It would not do for him to disappoint them.

He trembled with excitement at the mere thought.

~o~

The crew of the Naked Sol didn't relax until the small boat was well and truly out of sight. Everyone on deck slumped bonelessly to the ground as the tension ebbed out of them.

"Who was that guy?" Ryuko breathed.

"I don't know," Satsuki growled. "And that should be impossible. A swordsman of that caliber, capable of taking on a Life Fiber hybrid in single combat? Ragyo would have flagged him for immediate assassination, and then I'd know about him." She sighed, shaking her head. "I think- no, we need to talk to Mikisugi first and compare notes."

"What are you thinking, Satsuki-sama?" Gamagoori rumbled.

"Right now it is a wild hypothesis of the sort Mankanshoku would cook up," Satsuki replied, looking more unsure than any present had ever seen her. "I dearly hope I am wrong." The moment passed, and Satsuki was back to her commanding self. "But that will have to wait until we all get some rest and Mikisugi's engineers get that turbine up and running. Dismissed!"

The Elite Four quietly dispersed, and Ryuko huffed tiredly as she leaned on her sister. "Geez, I'm exhausted." She let out a jaw-cracking yawn. "'Least I'm not dead on my feet like when we arrived."

"You have been pushing yourself all day," Satsuki observed. "Sleep, Ryuko. I shall watch over you."

"Geez, sis," Ryuko yawned again, not noticing her sister tense. "Don't… treat me like a kid… alla time…"

Satsuki smiled contentedly as she watched Ryuko fall asleep. She was really quite cute like this, softer. That hardness that always seemed to suffuse her when she was awake just… fell away.

A yawn threatened to escape, and was hastily suppressed. She was pretty tired, too. Ah, well, a quick nap wouldn't hurt.

~o~

"Mmmrgh..."

"Are you awake, Ryuko?"

"Mmm...? Ssuki?"

"Indeed."

"Mmmaaaaagh. Geeze... how long have I been asleep?"

"Approximately six hours. The sun has fallen."

"Huh, well alright then. So why are we laying on the deck?"

"Apparently it was decided that it would be prudent to sleep on the deck."

"Huh, alright then. G'night..."

"Ryuko."

"Mmm?"

"Look at the sky."

"Huh? Why?"

"Humor me."

"Geeze alright, alright. I'm looking. Now what?"

"Do you see anything odd?"

"Huh? Well, I dunno. I mean, the stars are a bit brighter than usual, but other than-! ... Satsuki..."

"Yes Ryuko?"

"Do... you recognize any constellations?"

"No. No, I do not."

"...soooo, that theory of yours?"

"We may consider it confirmed."

"... _fuck."_

"Agreed."


	2. RWBY Displacement Fic

**Displaced**

RWBY

 **AN: Hello, everybody, CV12Hornet back with another plot bunny exorcised!**

 ***Eyes the cages stuffed to the gills with more bunnies***

 **Ho boy...**

 **This one's something of a response to the recent finale of RWBY Volume 3. No spoilers, but suffice to say it gets dark. Seriously dark. And you know what? That's fine. But that doesn't mean I can't write something invalidating a lot of that darkness, because I'm a fanfic writer. That's what I do.**

Beacon Academy. One of the four higher-level preparatory academies for training Huntsmen, the defenders of humanity against the scourge of the Grimm. Generally considered the best and most prestigious of the four, the sprawling tower of the academy was a symbol of hope and pride, rising like a guardian statue above the skyline of the Kingdom of Vale.

It was a symbol that had been sorely dented this night, what with the fighting on the grounds, the extensive damage to the exterior, and the dragon Grimm circling the tower. Not that anyone in Vale particularly noticed.

They had their own problems, after all.

Namely, a hole in a shopping district spewing forth Grimm and the Atlesian robots supposed to defend the Kingdom shooting at literally anything else.

Still, dragon-Grimm notwithstanding, the fighting around Beacon had petered out, with the robots deactivated, the Grimm largely driven off - for now, at least - and the White Fang in the process of packing up and leaving. The remaining defenders had gathered near the landing pad, and so a red rose petal floating to the ground near the burned-out cafeteria went unnoticed.

That rose petal was soon joined by many more, a veritable shower of the floral parts falling to the ground. Abruptly, the shower cut off, and the petals fluttered to the ground to reveal a human figure, kneeling with one hand on the concrete.

The figure wore almost exclusively dark brown. The greatcoat, pants, boots, and tricorn hat all shared the color scheme, the lone spots of color the bright tan of the undershirt and a hint of red at the tips of the figure's hair. That, and the red-and-black, very mechanical-looking scythe slung over her back.

The figure stood to their full height, revealing themselves to be female, and uncovering striking silver-grey eyes. Ruby Rose's gaze shifted to the distant skyline of Vale, and a wide grin worked itself onto her face.

"Yes!" she shouted, pumping her left arm back and forth. "Electric lights! Civilization! Valka, you crazy bitch, you did it! I'm home!" She paused in her celebration, squinting at the skyline. "Is that… smoke?"

Indeed, there were thin plumes of smoke rising above the buildings. A reptilian shriek prompted her to turn around and see the dragon-Grimm circling the school, as well as the devastated cafeteria.

Closing her eyes, Ruby let out a long-suffering sigh. "Of course. I finally find my way home, and of course it needs saving. From a _dragon_ no less. Fuck you, fate. Fuck you." Her hand drifted to the handle of Crescent Rose as she contemplated the dragon-Grimm. "Hmm, shoot first and ask questions later, or ask the questions now?"

Her left leg twinged in reminder at the _last_ time she'd charged a dragon without a plan.

"Right, questions first," Ruby decided, letting her hand fall back to the side. "Hopefully somebody's still here that I can talk to. And if they are here, they'll probably be…"

Ruby closed her eyes, letting her senses expand outwards, or rather, focused on one specific sense. Her ability to sense Aura, developed after many a sleepless night, had come in handy on more than one occasion back in Amairick, and it came in handy again as she searched for anyone Aura-capable left in the area.

It didn't take long for her to find a small cluster still on the campus, and she opened her eyes before tapping into her Semblance. Leaning forward, she dashed towards where she had felt the beacons of Aura, leaving behind a trail of her trademark rose petals.

Though nowhere near her top speed, it still took Ruby mere seconds to arrive at the landing pad in front of the school. Screeching to a halt, she took in the scene. Two standing, one a shorter girl with white hair and the other a blonde boy with a tail and some delicious abs. Scattered on the ground behind them were more teenagers, all clearly injured to one degree or another. And included among them was-

"Oh no, Yang!" Ruby exclaimed, rushing up to the fallen blond in a blur of red. Kneeling down, she cradled her older - or younger, considering she still looked seventeen - sister's head in her arms, taking in the stump where her right arm should've been, and ignoring the feeble attempts of the dark-haired girl next to her to stop the action.

"Who did this to you?" she demanded, unknowing or uncaring that Yang was unconscious and couldn't hear her, let alone respond. "I'll chop him to pieces! Or, wait, do you want to do that? Because I'll totally beat him or her within and inch of their life and then let you chop them up!"

"Ahem!"

Ruby turned around to see the two upright students glaring at her and pointing weapons at her face, a rapier for the girl and flintlock pistols for the guy.

"Who are you, and what do you think you're doing to my teammate?!" the white-haired girl demanded.

"Oh, you're on Yang's team? I'm Ruby Rose, pleased to meet you!" Ruby greeted with an outstretched hand, uncaring about the weapons pointed at her. "And to answer your other question, as her sister, I can't exactly let the jackass who cut off her arm live! If I did that I'd be a terrible sister!"

The white-haired girl blinked in apparent confusion. "That's… not possible," she said after a moment. "Yang's sister vanished months ago when-"

"That orange-haired guy with the bowler hat and exploding cane robbed a Dust shop," Ruby finished, letting her hand fall back to her side. "Which reminds me, I need to go kill him, too."

The white-haired girl continued to stare at Ruby before her Scroll ringing offered her the perfect escape plan. "Hang on, I need to get this." She reached down and pulled out the device, holding it up to her ear. "Hello?"

"So," Ruby said, turning to the blond… faunus! Yes, that was the word. "What happened here?"

"What happened-!" the faunus sputtered incredulously. "Where have you been the last twenty-four hours?! What does it look like happened?!"

"Well, obviously someone let a bunch of Grimm into Beacon, and probably Vale, too." Ruby eased Yang up, once again ignoring the dark-haired girl's whimpers of protest. "I mean, this wasn't done by a Grimm. Too neat. Which tells me there's a bad guy somewhere that I need to go beat up."

"Excuse me, but," Weiss interrupted. "I might be able to help you with that." She held out her Scroll to Ruby, who took it after only a moment's hesitation and held it up to her ear.

"Uh, so Weiss said you knew something about the mastermind?" Ruby asked hesitantly.

" _Y-Yes! Her name, it's Cinder Fall. Pyrrha's fighting her on top of the tower, and she can't win. Please, you've gotta save her. I-I'm not strong enough to…"_

Ruby smiled. Now this was more familiar ground. "Of course I will. You can count on me."

" _Th-Thank you. I-I gotta go, there are Grimm coming. Just… save her, okay?"_ And with that, the call cut off.

"So-" the white-haired girl began, only for the top of the tower to explode and drown out her response. Chunks of concrete and steel rained down the sides of the structure, and at the top they could see a warm, fiery glow.

"Oooh, she dead," Ruby winced.

" _RUBY!"_ the white-haired girl snapped.

"Sorry, sorry, the past several years have made me a bit pessimistic."

"As I was saying," the white-haired girl continued through gritted teeth. "If you need help getting to the top of the tower, I can get you there."

"Hmm," Ruby hummed as she eyeballed the height. "Nah, I got this. You should conserve your remaining Aura."

"Wha- How did-"

"See ya!" Ruby waved, before sprinting towards the tower at top speed.

She hit the base of the tower running, but instead of pushing off or coming to a stop her momentum carried her _upwards_. A fresh boost of speed allowed her to keep sprinting up the sheer wall, and she soared off the top of the tower, hanging in the air for a split second as she took in the scene: a teenage girl with red hair and bronze armor, kneeling on the floor of the tower with an arrow sticking out of her ankle, and a dark-haired woman in red, a bow trained on the redhead and a bright glow to her eyes.

If Ruby wasn't sure who to attack before, she sure as hell was now. Glowy eyes were never a good thing. Ever.

Her entrance had gotten the attention of both combatants, and they were turning, wide-eyed, towards her, Cinder attempting to train her bow on the new challenger. It was all painfully slow to Ruby's eyes, and she tucked her legs in before kicking off the air and speeding towards Cinder, scythe at ready.

Somehow, Cinder managed to react in time to avoid getting bisected at the waist. Instead, she had her right arm chopped off at the elbow and an inch-deep gash carved into her side. She slumped to the ground, left hand trying to stem the flow of blood, as Ruby landed softly on the ground.

The world sped back up again as Ruby regarded the kneeling form of Cinder Fall before her. _This_ was the mastermind behind all the destruction and misery? She felt she should be vaguely insulted for lack of challenge.

"Who are you? _What_ are you?" Cinder rasped in clear agony.

"You don't need to know that," Ruby sweetly replied. "Of course, I also don't want you to bleed out before someone with authority gets your plans out of you, so… Stasis."

Cinder froze, her face a rictus of shock and pain. Even the blood dripping from her arm stump froze in mid-air.

"Well, that was easy," Ruby remarked. She turned to the redhead, who was still kneeling there in wide-eyed awe. "You're Pyrrha, right?"

She nodded mutely.

"Oh, thank God!" Ruby sighed in relief. "Do you know how embarrassing it would be if I'd attacked the wrong person? Seriously, ten times is enough for one month."

" _SCREEEEEEE!"_

Ruby turned around to see the dragon finishing a turn that took it straight for them. "Ah, right, almost forgot about you," she remarked. "You sit tight, alright? I've got a dragon to slay."

Ruby took a step forward, then another, and soon she was launching herself off the tower at full speed. Tucking in her limbs and sticking Crescent Rose out, she applied one of her newer tricks: angular velocity. Her head surged forward, body following, faster and faster until she was spinning at very high speed. All of this happened in less than a second, and the results were spectacular to outside observers: a spinning blur that carved right through the dragon-Grimm's wing at the root.

It screeched as it started to fall and Ruby untucked herself, slightly disoriented. "Don't puke don't puke don't puke..." she repeated to herself.

Between that, a focus on her landing and trying to keep her stomach in check, Ruby didn't notice the pitch-black tail with white thagomizers swinging towards her until it hit, sending her tumbling into and through the tower.

~o~

Sun and Weiss both winced as Ruby was slammed into the tower.

"Oh, that one had to hurt!" Sun said. "Ouch."

"If she's at the level I think she is, she can take one hit like that," Weiss replied. "Though yes, it probably does hurt."

They watched in grim-faced silence as Ruby shot out of the tower, landing some more blows on the dragon-Grimm, only for it to bat her away with its remaining wing. Right towards them.

The two students hastily edged away as Ruby came in for a landing, smashing a small crater into the concrete.

"M'okay…" she drunkenly mumbled as she hauled herself upright, only to bend over and vomit messily on the ground.

"Well, that confirms it: she is definitely related to that drunken hoodlum that attacked my sister," Weiss said in a strained voice as she tried to discretely edge away from the pool of bile. "Which, of course, means that she is officially related to my teammate like she claimed. _Perfect._ As though Yang's family life wasn't complicated enough already."

Meanwhile, the scythe-wielder had finished emptying the contents of her stomach. "Welp, it's official," Ruby groaned miserably. "The stuff Valka makes tastes better coming up than it does going down."

"Uh, I hate to interrupt," Sun cut in. "But that thing's still there."

"Yeah, I know," Ruby remarked as she stood back up. "Thing's just as tough as I expected, which means I need some help."

Weiss and Sun exchanged glances, and nodded. "Well then, we'll-"

"Get your asses on that airbus and out of here," came a gruff voice from behind them.

The three whirled around to see a grim-faced Qrow stride towards them. "Uncle Qrow!" Ruby cried out before dashing at him.

The Huntsman only had time for a strangled "Ruby?" before she plowed into him - and knocked him flat on his ass.

"Oh, it's so good to see you again!" Ruby moaned as she squeezed him tightly.

"Geez, you've gotten bigger since I last saw you," Qrow chuckled indulgently, ignoring the ominous creaking of his ribs. "What'd I say when you asked for war scythe training?"

"'You're gonna cut your leg off. Lemme get the camera, this'll be hilarious'," Ruby softly replied. "And then Dad was all angry at you and stuff and tried to knock your head into your chest cavity." Her grin widened a bit as she pulled the glove off of her left hand and wiggled her knuckles, displaying the faintly discolored skin that painted them. "Turns out he had a biiiit of a point. Been there, done that, turns out that reattaching chopped-off fingers can be something of a bitch, especially when the cuts are neither clean nor uniform."

Qrow's eyes widened fractionally. "Okay, sometime soon we are going to sit down and go over just where the hell you've been the last few months." He gently shoved Ruby off, getting to his feet and pointing his scythe at the dragon-Grimm. "In the meantime, we've got a Grimm to kill."

"Cool, 'cause I've got an idea," Ruby announced as she brandished Crescent Rose herself.

~o~

"This is a crazy plan…" Qrow muttered to himself as he ran towards the dragon-Grimm.

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Ruby replied from where she was running alongside him. "Remember, you need to get up high."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Qrow groused. "I'm still not used to the idea of putting you on distraction duty."

Ruby sped forwards in lieu of replying. Even to Qrow's trained eyes she was little more than a blur, travelling up and down and all over the Grimm's front. The beast howled as it attempted to claw the nuisance off and hit nothing but air.

Qrow, for his part, let his Semblance take over, his body morphing into that of a crow mid-stride. He flapped his wings, soaring above the battle - and most importantly, over the Grimm's mask. Morphing back into human form, he lifted his scythe, now in sword mode, and stabbed it into the white bone of the mask with all the force he could muster. It only bit in a few inches, but that was fine; both of them had expected that.

The Grimm shifted below him, and he looked up to see Ruby hanging overhead. She kicked off the air, shooting downward and slamming into the handle of Qrow's sword, driving it in a little deeper. But she wasn't done yet. She pushed off again, this time far higher than her first jump, and charged her Semblance with all the Aura she could muster. This time, when she pushed off the air, she was less a blur and more a flaming, supersonic missile that crashed into Qrow's sword and drove it into the Grimm's mask, splitting its head in two.

Qrow and Ruby both came in for a tumbled landing, the dragon-Grimm crashing to the ground.

"Did… Did we get it…?" Ruby panted, leaning on Crescent Rose for support.

"I think so…"

"Oh, good… because I'm about to pass out."

*WHUMP!*

Qrow chuckled and shook his head, and kneeled down to pick her up. However, the sound of shifting vegetation drew his attention to the downed dragon-Grimm - which not only wasn't dissolving, it was moving!

" _SKREEEEEEEEEEE!"_

"Fucking figures," Qrow groused, shifting his weapon back to scythe mode. The dragon charged forward despite its head being split into two flaps, and Qrow met the charge, only to duck under the Grimm at the last second and bring up his scythe.

The blade bit into the Grimm's chest, and momentum carried it deeper into the dragon's torso, until at last it came to a stop and Qrow could yank it out with a disgusting squelch. This time it did start to dissolve, and the Huntsman breathed a sigh of relief. _Now_ he could retrieve his niece and give Taiyang the good news.

~o~

As she lay curled up in a soft, fluffy sleeping bag made out of fucking clouds, it was so soft, Ruby came to the conclusion that the sun was a total _jerk._ After all, he was trying to wake her up with a sunbeam to the face when she was sleeping in the softest thing she'd slept in since that night at the Governor's mansion five years ago, and that had been built with literal slave labor.

Plus someone had tried to kill her in the middle of the night, but that was normal.

The point is, she wanted to savor this, enjoy it, because it'd been _so_ long since she'd slept on something more comfortable than a straw pallet. But that stupid sun wouldn't go away!

"Mrrgh…" she mumbled, rolling over and burying her face in the pillow. "Turn off the sun…"

"Ruby…?"

Her eyes shot open at the familiar voice. There, looking like he hadn't slept for days and hadn't shaved for even longer, was her father, Taiyang Xiao Long. His expression was one of hope and fear, as if he almost couldn't believe she was there.

"I'm right here, Dad," Ruby said softly as she sat up and pulled him into a hug.

"Y-You're alive," he choked. "W-When I got the news, I almost… I…"

"Ssh," Ruby breathed. "No talking, just hugs."

The two stayed in their embrace for several minutes, Taiyang shaking with muffled sobs. Finally, they subsided, and Ruby spoke up.

"You okay now, dad?"

"I… yeah. I think I am," he replied.

"Good," Ruby replied, before breaking the embrace as fast as possible. "Because you'd better go take a shower and shave off that stupid beard right now! You smell _terrible!_ "

"Uh…" Taiyang lifted one arm and took a cautious sniff, immediately recoiling in disgust. "Right, I'll do that." The blonde turned and began to leave the room, pausing in the doorway as something occurred to him. "Oh, Yang's in her old room, in case you were wondering. I think she could use some sisterly love right now."

And with that, he left, heading for the bathroom, leaving Ruby to ponder that last statement and the slight hitch of his shoulders that had accompanied it.

After a few seconds of thought, she mentally shrugged and climbed out of bed. She was already planning to try out her big-sister skills, after all, and a more pressing problem was making itself known.

Namely, the fact that her pajamas, for all that they were a little loose on her fifteen-year-old self, were just short of obscene on her 22-year-old frame. The pants only came to mid-shin and were scandalously tight, and the shirt not only exposed her belly and cleavage, it was fairly straining to contain her chest.

And that reminded her that she was in dire need of replacing her wardrobe, and fixing up/rebuilding Crescent Rose, and brushing up on her rusty marksmanship, and finding out what the hell was going on here in Vale, and getting to know Yang's team better. So much to do!

But first, she had a little sister to cheer up!

God, that still sounded weird.

Regardless, Ruby exited her room, making her way down the hall to where Yang's old room was. Embarrassingly, she walked right past it the first time and had to turn around before hitting the kitchen. And Yang was disturbingly lifeless when Ruby walked in, just staring listlessly out the window.

Grinning, Ruby executed her sure-kill big sister technique.

"Yang!" she shouted, diving into a tackle glomp that promptly knocked both of them off the bed, falling to the ground with a loud thump. "It's so good to see you again!"

"Yeah, it's… good to see you too, Ruby," Yang monotoned.

Ruby's eyes narrowed. "Y'know, if I didn't know better I'd think you weren't happy to see me."

"That's because I'm not," Yang bit out, though with surprisingly little heat. "Now could you get off me so I can get back to bed?"

She complied, watching Yang's every move, and how agonizingly slow it was.

"Yang…" she started. "What happened while I was gone?"

"You'd know if you were here!" Yang snapped. "Beacon is gone, half of Vale is wrecked, and all my friends think it was my fault! And on top of that my team is scattered to- to-"

"The four winds?" Ruby helpfully suggested.

All the anger seemed to just… melt out of Yang, and she slumped back onto her pillow. "Just… leave me alone, Ruby. I just want to lie here."

The Huntress sighed, lifting up her hand. "Well, I didn't want to resort to this, but drastic measures and all that."

And with that, Ruby smacked her sister upside the head.

"Ow!" Yang cried out indignantly. "What was that fo-"

"Okay, I'm stopping the angst train right here," Ruby announced, her hands on her hips. "Let me guess: you think you've finally come up against a monster you can't beat, one you can't touch or even see. It's invincible, and smothering you."

Yang didn't say anything, but the quick averting of her eyes was all the answer Ruby needed.

"I thought so," Ruby nodded. "I've fought this monster before, after all, and let me let you in on a little secret: it's _weak_. Beyond weak. The only way it can hurt you is if you let it, and if you fight back, even a little? Every step is a kick in the face, every breath is toxic. The very act of living kills it. And right now? You're not living; that's the only reason this hurts so much. Go out there, go search for one of your teammates, train every other limb you have until it feels like _they're_ about to fall off, it doesn't matter! Just do anything, anything at all that doesn't have you lying in bed all day! You don't need both arms to beat it; you just need to _live._ "

"This isn't about the arm, Ruby," Yang dully retorted.

*CLONK!*

"Ow!"

"Way to miss the point, dumbass," Ruby scolded as she withdrew her fist. "It's an allegory, and the bottom line is that while it might _look_ like everything is so far beyond you that you can't possibly win, newsflash, it really _isn't."_

"Yeah, I got that bit," Yang shot back. "And it's stupid. You don't get it! This isn't the sort of thing that can just be wished away! You don't understand-!"

Scowling, Ruby reached down and whipped off her pants in one clean motion.

"Ah, Ruby, what are you-!" Yang began before her eyes widened at the massive, ropy scar on her sister's left leg. "What…"

"It's a long story that I'd rather share with everyone," Ruby stated. "But suffice to say, I was in a similar position to where you are now. People I knew and loved were dead, and the talentless hacks they called doctors weren't sure if I'd walk again, let alone fight. And you know what I did? I put on my big girl boots, worked my ass off to not only get back in fighting condition but get _better_ , and went and killed the fucking dragon that did this to me."

"Ruby… that's- ow!" Yang rubbed at her increasingly sore scalp. "Stop hitting me!"

"Make me," Ruby sneered, reaching out and poking Yang in the shoulder. Repeatedly. "Poke, poke, poke-poke, poke-"

"Dammit, Ruby," Yang growled, her hair starting to ignite. "Knock. It. OFF!"

*POWIE!*

Yang blinked. Her arm was outstretched - when had that happened? - and was visible half-embedded in the far wall of the hall through the hole in her own wall.

"Oh, shoot!" she exclaimed, hopping out of bed and running up to her downed sister. "Ruby, are you okay?!"

"Owie…" Ruby groaned as she worked her way back up to a sitting position. "I forgot how hard you hit. That... really..." The once-young girl's gaze locked onto her sister, and her features instantly sharpened with predatory eagerness. "HURT!"

Yang had a brief moment to think 'oh shit'. Before she knew it, Ruby was looming over her, hands outstretched. They darted towards the blond-

And began tickling her on her sides.

"Ah! No! S-Stop, Ruby! Ahahahahaha!" Yang pleaded.

"You're not getting out of this!" Ruby shot back, picking up speed. "I'm gonna tickle you until you can't move!"

"Ahahahahaha! W-Well, what if I did… this?!"

And with that, Yang landed a counterattack, rubbing her chin in the crook of Ruby's neck.

"Ah! Dammit! Y-Yang, you cheater!"

"S-Say 'uncle' and I'll stop!"

"Y-You f-first!"

Finally, the laughter became too much, and both girls slumped to the ground, laughing in between gasps of air.

"Feeling… better…?" Ruby asked.

"Y-Yeah, a little," Yang said, even as tears started to shine in her eyes, tears that had nothing to do with her laughter. "Y-You're really back."

"I am," Ruby replied softly. "And I'm not going anywhere if I can help it."

"I… I've missed you so much, Ruby!" Yang cried, latching onto her sister and outright bawling her eyes out.

Much like with Taiyang, Ruby simply returned the hug and let her cry. The two sisters stayed in this position for several minutes, and eventually Yang's sobs petered down to wet sniffles. Still, Ruby didn't break the hug until Taiyang tapped her on the shoulder.

"Hey," he said. "I really shouldn't break this up, but the shower's ready."

"YES!" Ruby whooped as she shot to her feet and tore off down the hall. "OH, INDOOR PLUMBING, HOW I'VE MISSED YOU SO!"

Father and daughter exchanged bemused glances, before settling into an uncomfortable silence.

"So, you're looking better," Taiyang began, awkwardly. "I'm sorry I haven't been-"

"Dad, if you're going to apologize for anything, apologize for sending Zwei to Beacon," Yang interrupted. "I'm not blind; you clearly started backsliding shortly after you sent him."

"I did," Taiyang admitted, chuckling ruefully. "I think we both underestimated how important Ruby was to us."

Yang's expression grew haunted. "You saw that scar on her leg, right? W-Where has she been, what has she been doing to take an injury like that?"

"That's a question I'd like answered myself," Qrow drawled from where he was leaning against the doorway. "Good to see you up and about, kiddo; you had me worried there for a while."

Yang was silent for a moment. "And… Beacon?"

"Could be better," Qrow replied. "Could also be a hell of alot worse. Thank Ruby for that; she captured the ringleader of this whole mess and helped me take down that dragon. Still need to repair the place and clear out more Grimm, but we should be able to get Beacon up and running again."

"Well, I'm sure we all have fascinating stories to share," Taiyang cut in. "But we can talk about it over breakfast. I'll get dressed and get some pancakes started; you two can fill each other in while I make them."

~o~

Ruby moaned in contentment as the hot water flowed over her. She had long since finished cleaning herself, but the high-pressure, high-temperature water just felt so damn good after so long without it that she never wanted to stop.

Still, all good things must come to an end, and so it was that Ruby noticed the water temperature beginning to drop. Sighing, she shut off the shower and began drying herself off. The smell of pancakes wafted into the bathroom, confirming her decision to get out of the shower, and she quickly re-dressed in the ill-fitting pajamas, vowing once again to go clothes shopping ASAP.

To her relief, when she got to the kitchen Yang was having a somewhat animated conversation with Qrow at the table while Taiyang griddled up the first batch of pancakes.

"Morning, Uncle Qrow!" she greeted.

"Morning, kiddo."

"Aw, c'mon, Uncle Qrow, I'm twenty-two now!"

"And I'm forty-four, I still get to call you 'kid'."

"Perfect timing, Rubes," Yang joined in before the argument could get even more childish. "Dad was just finishing up the first batch of pancakes."

"PANCAKES!" Ruby squealed as she hastily sat down and held her knife and fork in clenched hands.

"Sure, just leave me to slave over the hot griddle," Taiyang drawled, though without any rancor, as he delivered the pancakes. "Dig in, there's plenty more where that came from."

Qrow, Yang, and Ruby all dove into the stacks with the voraciousness of a frenzied shark. The pancakes were all gone in minutes. The second batch was consumed at a more sedate pace, allowing for some conversation. News about Patch, Qrow's adventures, Yang's time at Beacon. Light topics, topics that skirted around the elephant in the room, not out of any fear or nervousness, but a simple desire to not ruin the breakfast.

Finally, after the third batch, everyone was nursing a swollen belly and the batter was completely gone. And with everyone so sated and satisfied, it would take a colossal jackass to break the moment.

"So, Ruby," Qrow started. "What happened while you were gone? You said you were twenty-two. Seven years. It's only been a few months for us."

Ruby sighed, sitting up from her previously sprawled position. "Valka - one of my best friends and the one who got me back - said that might be an issue," she explained. "After all, when you're crossing planes physics tends to get a little… wonky." She held up a hand to forestall any questions. "Look, I'm going to explain everything, but it might take a while. They were a very… busy seven years for me. Full of pain, and fun, and friends, and enemies, and a strange land filled with fantastic beasts looking to eat you. Amairick is… not a nice place.

"It began with that Dust robbery back in Vale, and that orange-haired jackass with the exploding cane…"


	3. Kantai Collection fic

**Feral**

Kantai Collection

 **AN: It's funny what a picture can spark.**

 **My friend and fellow author Xomniac has informed me I've done this story already. Phooey! Recycling a story with new settings and characters can allow for some very different and interesting outcomes.**

 ***floor rumbles***

 **Oh boy. Gotta go, the bunnies are coming.**

" _Another failure."_

" _We can't continue doing this. These are resources better spent on other shipgirls, shipgirls we can actually summon."_

" _Agreed. Though, I wonder…"_

" _Hm?"_

" _Why doesn't she come? Is it because we scrapped her instead of turning her into a museum? Is it simply because she's tired and no longer wants to fight?"_

" _I don't think it matters why she's not coming. What matters is one, inescapable fact that we need to accept."_

" _Enterprise is not coming."_

~o~

The year is 2019. Shit is fucked.

July 7, 2016 is a day that will live in infamy, for it is then that the creatures known as the Abyss announced their presence to the world. Taking the form of women with chalk-white skin and monsters and machinery attached to them, they attacked without warning, without any reason anyone could discern. Norfolk, Malta, Hawaii, and Singapore fell within hours, caught completely by surprise. And though the Abyssals quickly left Norfolk, it was clear everywhere else that they were here to stay.

The navies of humanity tried to fight back, of course. But with half the US Navy, the most powerful on Earth, sunk on the first day, it was all they could do not to be annihilated in their retreat. The Abyssals were endless, and something about them interfered with targeting and detection systems, even aside from the fact that most naval weapons were _not_ designed with human-sized targets in mind.

Luckily for the world, salvation had also delivered itself on that black day. Newport News and the vital shipyards there escaped destruction as a towering blond woman with glasses and backpack sporting nine 16" guns appeared on the water to drive them off. And days after that, two more women carrying battleship guns arrived at the head of a convoy of Hawaiian refugees. Wisconsin, Missouri, and Arizona thus became the first of the kantai musume, or shipgirls.

Japan led the way in research into this new phenomenon, their Shinto traditions easily accepting their existence and offering tantalizing hints on ways to call them. Within a year, the majority of the ships of World War II had been summoned; by 2018, all were summoned, tactics had been developed, and the line had been held.

Despite the success, four stretches of ocean remain the domain of the Abyssals. Malta and the surrounding waters are the province of the Island Siege Empress, spewing out battleships and swift cruisers to attack the shores of Sicily and Tunisia. The Suez Canal is closed, unlikely to reopen any time soon. Opposing her are the shipgirls of Italy, France, Turkey, Greece, and the UK's Mediterranean Fleet, and it is all they can do to contain her. The North Atlantic is the domain of the Submarine Empress. Airpower keeps her forces away from the coasts, and massive convoys are run across the Atlantic, bearing vital goods to Europe and escorted by the shipgirls of Germany, Canada, the UK, and the USA. Submarines are the threat here, and SSNs have proved invaluable in aiding the shipgirls. The Central Pacific is ruled by the Harbor Empress, striking at the convoys running along the North and South Pacific to Japan and Australia, respectively, and sending periodic forays towards the West Coast of North America and Japan. And finally, the Fortress Empress sits on her throne in Singapore, ruler of a domain that stretches from Sumatra and Borneo to the highlands of New Guinea; an area of land and sea that once held 200 million people, and now only holds ghosts.

The Re-class battleship sitting on a beach in Oahu with her hood down knew very little of this. All she knew was that Honolulu looked very pretty being taken over by nature, and that soon she would be going on the Hunt again.

She wasn't worried, at least, not about herself. She was a Re-class, the most feared Abyssal type on the high seas that wasn't an Installation. And besides, she was the Hunter. The only one to walk away from more than one Hunt. She knew what she needed to do to survive.

Her tail suddenly perked up, turning to look at something behind her. The crunch of footsteps on sand followed soon afterward. The Hunter didn't turn around, instead letting the Ta-class battleship come to a halt next to her.

[Who'd you bring?] the Hunter said after a moment.

[Two Ne-class,] the other battleship replied. [They're waiting at the mouth of the harbor.]

The Hunter nodded. A small force, but fast and with heavy firepower. A good combination for the Hunt. [When were you all summoned?]

[Just last week!] the Ta chirped, suddenly cheerful. [Oh, I can't wait to take on the Grey Ghost! I'll be the best of my sisters once we beat her!]

The Hunter resisted the urge to sigh. Newbies. The Empress probably didn't want to keep burning scarce veterans on the Hunt. Instead, she stood and stepped out into the surf, her hooves quickly gaining purchase on the surface and allowing her to steam away from the beach. The Ta followed shortly thereafter, still grinning widely.

[So!] the battleship said. [Any advice for me?]

[Don't let her get close,] the Hunter intoned. [And don't expect anything you do to actually kill her.]

[Aw, but that's just what they told us in the briefing!] the Ta whined.

[That's because it's the best advice you can get.]

Silence fell over the two battleships as the Ta pouted and the Hunter lapsed into her usual silence. Luckily for her sanity, the two heavy cruisers were similarly quiet, and as they moved out from Hawaii she ran over the information given on the Grey Ghost's whereabouts. She'd hit a supply convoy heading out to the Marianas garrison not even a day prior, typical behavior for her, and would likely still be there once they arrived in the region.

The next three days passed quickly, broken by periodic and unsuccessful attempts by the Ta to socialize. This eventually sent her into a sullen silence, and by the sunset on the third day the Hunter was seriously considering telling a story just to snap her out of it. A ping on her sonar, though, caught her attention.

[I have an underwater contact,] she reported.

[It's probably one of our own submarines,] the Ta replied dismissively. [Ignore it.]

While that idea made sense, the Hunter's instincts were screaming at her. Something was wrong.

[Huh?]

All eyes turned to the trailing Ne, but while the Ta and the other Ne were looking at her face, the Hunter's eyes were down to the heavy cruiser's ankles, where a slim, white, red-clawed hand was gripping one of them.

' _That's new,'_ some part of the Hunter's brain noted, and she opened her mouth to shout a warning, only for the hand to yank down and drag the Ne-class underwater. She raised her tail, depth charges loaded, but the Ta grabbed it before she could fire.

[What are you doing?!] she demanded.

[Trying to kill our target, you fool!] the Hunter snarled back. [That heavy cruiser is dead, and you just cost me a chance at damaging her!]

[But-!]

The other heavy cruiser's protest was cut off by a figure bursting out of the water and grabbing her from behind, claws pressed to her throat. The Ta hesitated. The Hunter didn't, her tail firing both guns at her obscured target. At such a short range, she couldn't miss, but with her opponent mostly obscured by her impromptu hostage, both shells hit the heavy cruiser, penetrated, and detonated, carving two large chunks out of her torso and leaving her slumped over, dead.

The Grey Ghost - for that's all she could be - promptly shoved the dead heavy cruiser off to the side and into the water, and manifested a massive slab of razor-edged metal in her hand. Golden eyes locked on the Ta-class battleship, and the Abyssal flinched, taking a step back and aiming her shaking guns at the figure before her.

[A-All batteries, fire!]

Eight heavy guns barked, and the Grey Ghost _moved_. Four shells went wide, smacking harmlessly into their opponent's wake. Three hit the raised slab in her hand, exploding to no effect, and the last was obscured by the resulting cloud of smoke.

A shaky grin appeared on the Ta-class' face as she observed the smoke cloud. [Ha… hahahahaha! She's dead! I killed her! I can't believe everyone else had so… much…]

The triumphant rant trailed off as the smoke cleared, revealing the Grey Ghost untouched except for a few rents in the metal slab she carried, which was now swinging for her torso. Stunned, the Abyssal battleship only barely managed to catch the edge of the slab on her arms.

Of course, it promptly carved through her arms and most of her torso anyway, so that didn't help.

As the Ta slipped, bleeding, beneath the waves, the Grey Ghost stood, and the Hunter had a chance to observe her longtime nemesis. She wore a white sailor top with a black tie, baring her midriff. A black half-cape, trimmed in gold, covered her shoulders, and a miniskirt of the same design brushed against her thighs; all three articles were frayed and tattered on the bottom edge. Long white gloves with gold stripes covered her arms, tipped with red claws; a red gorget made of Abyssal teeth protected her throat; armored boots with gold seams covered her calves; and a black, armored hat with gold seams and a peeking Abyssal eye completed the ensemble. The metal slab was revealed to be a flight deck, a bright yellow 6 emblazoned on it and rimmed by a red metal sponson all along its edge, razor-sharp and sporting sixteen twin 3" mounts of the type used by I-class destroyers for anti-air. Her skin was pale white, not the chalk of Abyssals but much lighter than the shipgirls she'd seen, though her thighs had the appearance of metal plating instead. Long red hair, half drawn into a ponytail held with a star-shaped tie, cascaded down her back and front. And then there were her gold eyes, quite at home above the confident smirk she sported.

The two eyed each other for a long moment, before the Grey Ghost spoke up.

"Are you going to try and fight me?" she asked.

[No,] the Hunter replied. [I like being alive.]

The shipgirl nodded. "Smart. Alright, go in peace or whatever. I've got bigger things to worry about than you."

And with that, she ducked underwater again.

[Definitely new,] the Hunter muttered. [Seriously, when did she learn to do that?]

The Hunter filed away the mystery for later before turning around and steaming away. Yes, this was how she survived hunt after hunt: by being smart enough to know when to just walk away.

~o~

Enterprise surfaced near the coast of Sarigan island, the three Abyssal corpses stashed away in an underwater cave for future repairs. Well, aside from an arm taken from the Ta to patch up her flight deck. One quick climb up the sheer cliffs of the island later, she walked over to a palm tree set back from the rocks and surrounded by grass, and slumped against it, her flight deck dropped at her side.

Almost immediately, her fairies swarmed out of her, most heading for her battered - again - flight deck. Miniature welding torches came out, cutting into the arm and cutting out armor plating for reuse. More could be felt inspecting a gash in her side where one of the Ta's shells had nicked her. But one instead stood on her shoulder, glaring cutely at her.

"Hey!" it barked.

"I know, I know," Enterprise sighed, raising her hands up. "I'm running out of time."

Said hands were shaking uncontrollably, and the carrier could feel a hundred other minor aches, tears, and other sundry bits of damage spread throughout her. Her damcon fairies had worked miracles over the last three years, but without a proper shipyard they could only slow the accumulation of damage, and many of those miracles had had… side effects.

As if on cue, a shudder wracked her body, and she hunched over with a grunt of pain, her hand shooting up to cover her face. Her jaw clenched as the desire to _maimburnkill_ ran through her, red creeping into her vision.

" _Before we're through with them, the Japanese language will only be spoken in Hell!"_

After an eternal ten seconds, the moment passed, and Enterprise drew her hand away, noting the sheen of red blood covering it.

"In more ways than one," she muttered.

A small hand pressed against her jaw, and she glanced to the side to see her shoulder-fairy looking up at her with warm concern. "Hey," it said softly.

A slight smile spread over her face. "Don't worry, we'll muddle through," she said, reaching out to pat the fairy on the head. The fairy huffed and crossed its arms in a pout, but notably didn't protest.

"Hey!"

Enterprise glanced down to her side, where instead of a bleeding gash there was now smooth metal, waiting for skin to grow back to cover it.

"Good job, you guys!" Enterprise said, shooting a thumbs up at the spot. A frisson of satisfaction ran through from her fairies, and the carrier leaned back against her tree. "How long do I have?"

Her shoulder fairy hummed thoughtfully, tapping its chin. "Hey," it finally said after several minutes.

"Four months, give or take three and a half, huh?" Enterprise repeated, gazing out over the ocean. "Time to check up on Guam again, I think."

~o~

Fleet carrier Zuikaku strode through the halls of the Yokosuka District Headquarters, heading for the office of Admiral Goto. All around her, the noise of the human and shipgirl personnel of the District washed over her, utterly unchanged from a few months prior. She appreciated that. Civilians - and even sailors from other districts - had a bad tendency towards hero worship, and while fun at first, it had quickly gotten annoying.

And the worst part was that she couldn't claim, even in private, that it was undeserved hero worship! She had, after all, been the last carrier standing for half of Operation Lexus, something that practically begged for comparisons to Enterprise.

Zuikaku grimaced at that. The Enterprise comparisons were the worst part of it. The legendary carrier had never been summoned despite numerous attempts to do so, and the public - at least in Japan and the United States - had been quite desperate to find a substitute. In the US Navy, the younger Hornet had ended up stepping into that role, and by all accounts she did a good job with it. In Japan, it had been a dead heat between her and Hiryu, but Operation Lexus had tipped the scales entirely in her favor.

Still, as long as she stayed out of comments sections on the internet, she didn't have to deal with it if she didn't want to. And with that thought, she reached the Admiral's office and pulled the door open.

The Admiral's office was split into two rooms, an outer waiting room where secretary ship Ooyodo was sitting at her desk doing her work, and an inner office where Admiral Goto worked. As Zuikaku walked into the outer office, she saw Atago, Nagato, and Yahagi sitting there as well.

"Heeeey, Zuikaku!" the blonde heavy cruiser chirped, waving, as the carrier sat down next to them.

"Admiral Goto isn't available yet?" she asked.

"The Admiral is… occupied with another appointment," Nagato replied, her brows drawn into an annoyed scowl.

The question of _who_ that appointment was with was answered as the door was flung open, a flushed, frazzled-looking Admiral Goto holding it that way.

"Out!" he shouted, jabbing his finger towards the outer door.

"Oh, FINE, Admiral," fast battleship Kongo sniffed as she pranced - pranced! - out of his office. "But don't think you're RID OF ME, desu!"

The minute the battleship was gone, Admiral Goto slumped to the floor, head in his hands. Zuikaku let out an 'oh' of understanding.

"So Kongo was distracting him again," she said.

"Yes," Nagato grit out.

The room lapsed into an uncomfortable silence, Zuikaku and Atago soon fidgeting in their seats, that lasted until Ooyodo cleared her throat.

"Admiral, your 2:30 appointment is here," she said, not even looking up from her work.

"Right," came Admiral Goto's reply, muffled by his legs. He slowly stood up, his expression despondent, and then he slapped himself in the face. As the four shipgirls waiting watched in shock and more than a little horror, his expression melted into one of careful neutrality, and he turned his attention to them, beckoning into his office. "Shall we?"

"S-Sure," Nagato replied. Goto nodded, and walked into his office, and as the quartet stood she shot a fearful look at her three comrades. "I just saw that, right? The Admiral just slapped himself into sensibility?"

"Yes, you did," Yahagi bit out. "And now, we are going to go in there, and we are never going to speak of this again. Agreed?"

"Agreed," Zuikaku and Atago chroused.

With that pledge, they filed into the office and sat down, waiting for Admiral Goto to re-organize some papers that had clearly been scattered by Typhoon Kongo.

"Alright," the Admiral said after a few minutes. "Well, first, I have some bad news. It's being suppressed, but I doubt it will remain that way for long, and I think you should hear this from me." He paused, seeming to collect his thoughts. "Two days ago, Britain and Ireland fell to the Abyss."

Once again, silence descended, the four shipgirls in front of him staring in shock and horror with wide eyes and dropped jaws.

"What," Zuikaku finally managed to get out after a few minutes.

"H-How…" Atago breathed, looking close to tears.

"The Home Fleet was understrength, with most of their force committed to Operation Royce," Admiral Goto explained. "The Abyssals ambushed them in Scapa, and very few of them escaped. The Germans and the Channel Fleet only bought enough time to evacuate a few hundred thousand people, and the latter's casualties were horrendous."

"And with Britain gone, we need to start clearing the Central Pacific ASAP so we can reinforce Europe," Yahagi divined. "So, the Marianas first, or Minami-Tori-shima?"

The light cruiser fidgeted in agitation as everyone in the room stared at her. "A-A samurai should know of such things to best advise her lord," she said defensively. "And Fubuki uses me to bounce ideas off of."

"Well," Goto said after a moment, shaking his head. "You're right. We're pushing to the Marianas. The details are being finalized, but expect a deployment comparable to Operation Lexus. The Americans will also be making another push west to catch the Abyssals' attention in the Eastern Pacific."

"If it ain't broke don't fix it, huh?" Zuikaku chuckled.

"Precisely. X-day has been set one week from now," Goto continued. "Since you're the leaders of your respective ship types, I expect you to help prepare your comrades for this operation. It will be higher intensity, but lower duration, and will likely require specialized training; accuracy in fire support will be essential." The Admiral reached down, retrieving several manila envelopes, and passed them out. "These are the details. Familiarize yourself, and familiarize your division mates. Dismissed!"

Zuikaku, Nagato, Yahagi, and Atago all stood and saluted with a bark of "Yes, sir!", before bustling out of the office. The group soon split up, Atago and Yahagi heading for the cruiser dorm and Nagato and Zuikaku heading for the dorms jointly shared by the battleships and fleet carriers. Still surrounded by the bustle of the base, they kept quiet, neither willing to speak both due to secrecy and the magnitude of the information they'd been given.

"Goddamn," Zuikaku breathed out as they passed out of the public parts of the base, tension flowing from her shoulders. "Britain. Fucking _Britain_. We haven't suffered a loss like this since the Black Day."

"Yes, which makes this operation even more important," Nagato stated. "More than the military value, the world needs a victory, a large one, if we are to ensure it does not fall into despair."

"Yeah…" the carrier agreed, her eyes shut. "Still, why did it have to be the Marianas. Shokaku and I have bad memories of that place."

"You'll be able to handle it," Nagato stated, much like a child would state that the sky was blue. "And I believe you will be stronger for it."

A grin spread over Zuikaku's face at that. "Heh. Believe in me that believes in you?"

The battleship turned and threw her a mock glare. "Gurren Lagann is a very good show, and can be very wise."

"I'd never say otherwise," Zuikaku assured her, the line accompanied by a hearty slap on the back, which sent Nagato pitching forward. "Oh, uh… sorry."

"Apology accepted."

~o~

Enterprise yawned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she steamed towards Guam. Abyssal activity around the island had been mostly normal for the last week, forcing her to stay out at sea and awake the whole time, but for some reason the Abyssals had cleared out since the previous evening, giving her an opportunity to get in close.

By the time Guam was in sight, she _still_ hadn't seen any Abyssals, and while that was somewhat worrying, her instincts told her that she could safely get closer. Apra Harbor soon came into view; still no Abyssals. Taking a deep breath, she steamed into the harbor itself, a growl of anger bubbling up from within her at the sight of nature taking over the former Naval Base Guam and the port to the north.

"I probably shouldn't've expected the Abyssals to maintain the island," she muttered. "But it still pisses me off!"

Grumbling, she pulled herself up onto one of the concrete piers, her foot hitting something that wasn't a rock. Glancing down, her eyes widened at the sight of a can of Spam.

Enterprise fell to her knees, eyes shining, and she reached out and poked the can. Then again. Once she was convinced the can was real, she grabbed it and tore the top of the can off. The sight of glistening pink meat-like substance greeted her, and with another yank she tore off one of the sides of the can before emptying the whole thing into her mouth, heedless of the fact that it was almost certainly three years old.

Flavor exploded over her tongue, salty and savory. She began to chew, slowly, both due to the size of the hunk of meat and also a desire to savor the flavor. Having subsisted on a diet of raw fish, Abyssal guts, and straight bunker oil for almost three years, even Spam was the next thing to heavenly.

"Oooohh…" she moaned, meat juice and saliva dribbling down her chin. "So gooooood…"

Finally, she had to swallow, though it came in flavor-lengthening bits. Sadly, no matter how she stretched it out, the outcome was the same: no more Spam.

"Aww…" Enterprise whined, glancing around. "I wonder if I can find any more cans…"

The buzzing of a propellor plane caught her attention, and she glanced up to the sight of a Japanese Aichi E13A floatplane, as her recognition fairies dutifully informed her. She flinched, hand shooting up to her face as those words flashed through her mind again.

" _Before we're through with them, the Japanese language will only be spoken in Hell!"_

Luckily, the plane was also accompanied by the distant thunder of battleship gunfire, which served to snap her out of her fugue before it could get any worse.

"We won the War," she muttered to herself. "I don't need to be hostile to them."

Even to her, the words sounded hollow. But if there were Japanese ships nearby, they were her best bet to get out of this and get some proper repairs. She'd just have to keep a lid on her other persona, like every other time it'd surfaced.

With her resolve set, Enterprise hopped back onto the water and steamed out of the harbor and towards the sound of gunfire, constantly scanning the horizon and wishing she still had her long-broken radar or any SBDs.

After an hour of steaming, she was close enough to the action to get an idea of what was going on. There was a large battleship duel going on, and then close in front a wild furball joined by period puffs of flack.

Of more immediate importance was a smaller battle going on about fifteen miles distant that looked to be a cruiser action of some kind. That seemed like an eminently better fight to get involved in than the roaring gun duel on the horizon or the swirling fighter-on-bomber action in the sky.

Slowly, Enterprise crept towards the fight, a pack of Abyssal heavy cruisers trading 8" shells with their Japanese counterparts. Said Abyssals were also totally occupied by their fight, and as a stray Long Lance nearly blasted her foot off, the carrier had to admit they had good reason to be so focused.

Not that that would stop her from taking advantage of their distraction, of course.

The first heavy cruiser, a Ri-class, was messily bisected before it even knew there was a threat coming. The other heavy cruisers pivoted around - and promptly ate several 8" shells each. Between the incoming fire and Enterprise tearing them all superfluous new orifices, it wasn't long before the heavy cruisers were so much scrap sinking before the waves.

That just left the Japanese cruisers and destroyers slowly steaming towards her, and for a moment Enterprise believed she could go without losing control.

Then she actually got a proper look at them, and it all went to hell.

" _Before we're through with them, the Japanese language will only be spoken in Hell!"_

The words flowed through her head, stuck on repeat, and she slumped to the ground, one hand propping her flight deck against the water, and the other clutching her face.

' _No! Not again!'_

And to her horror, the first set of words were drowned out by another, a mantra pounding in her skull, trying to get out.

" _Kill Japs. Kill Japs. Kill more Japs."_

Red swarmed into her vision. Her muscles tensed, jaw clenching into a tight snarl. As her helmet slid over her eyes and she felt blood flow from her eyes, she had time for only one more thought.

' _I'm sorry.'_

~o~

Ashigara examined the strange shipgirl that had saved them a lot of trouble. Yes, she had been instrumental in breaking up the Abyssal cruiser force without the expenditure of more of their limited torpedo stock, but many of the details of her appearance were deeply alarming. The preponderance of red and black in her clothing contrasted with extremely pale skin, what looked like Abyssal parts were scattered across her body, and of course, there was the iron slab simultaneously masquerading as a sword and a flight deck.

When she suddenly hunched over, Ashigara's concern ratcheted up into outright worry.

"Gnnnrrr **rrrrr!"** the mysterious shipgirl growled, a wild, feral growl that sent shivers down the heavy cruiser's spine. The odd hat on her head slotted down over her eyes and began glowing red. The gold trim and seams on her outfit suddenly shifted to red, and odd spots of purple spread over previously red surfaces. But the worst part was the combination of murderous rage and panicked guilt Ashigara had glimpsed on her face before the hel- no, mask, slipped over her face. The Japanese cruiser tensed, ready for combat.

She was not ready for the carrier to suddenly sprint forward, sword raised in an overhand chop. Myoko, her target, frantically threw her rudder to port, and while her body got away, the strike chopped off one of her shoulder-mounted 8" turrets, along with the poofy sleeve it was attached to. Nachi and Haguro immediately fired salvos, but the sword came up again, sweeping through the firing arcs and catching the shells and harmlessly detonating them.

With her sisters engaged, Ashigara frantically ran through her options. The strange shipgirl was clearly too fast and too well-protected with her flight deck to easily stop her through gunfire, an assessment confirmed by her continued survival against three heavy cruisers firing as fast as they could. Kitakami was out of torpedoes, and she didn't relish the idea of pitting thin-skinned destroyers against an opponent capable of cleaving through heavy cruisers. She grimaced as the only option came to mind. This was going to _hurt._

Surging forward, Ashigara swept past Nachi and Haguro, and as Myoko dodged out of the way of another attack from the strange shipgirl, she came to a halt inside the swing and grabbed the carrier's wrists.

Both shipgirls' turbines surged as they pressed against each other, madness-enhanced strength matching against strength magnified by protective instincts. It was a stalemate.

Ironically, it was not her sisters that delivered the blow that she was waiting for. Instead, it was a stray Val, from Akagi judging from the unit markings, that dove in and dropped a bomb right on top of her opponent's strange headgear, smashing it to pieces. The carrier pitched forward, eyes vacant and the red bleeding out of her outfit. Ashigara caught her, wincing as the action jostled muscles and turbines that had been straining to match her opponent. She also made sure to grab the flight deck, making note of the gold 6 on it.

"I'm sorry, but…" Kitakami said as she steamed up. "What the fuck was that?!"

"I don't know," Myoko said, sounding rather shaken. "Maybe it was an Abyssal experiment gone wrong?"

Ashigara shifted her grip on the strange shipgirl, gratefully passing the flight deck over to Haguro as her youngest sister passed by. "I know what's going on here," she announced. "Call Yokosuka. Tell them we've found Enterprise."

Ignoring the shouts of surprise, Ashigara took a closer look at the carrier in her arms, seeing details she hadn't been able to at a distance. And the picture they printed was not pretty.

"Don't worry," she whispered, stroking Enterprise's cheek. "You're safe now."


End file.
